Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran.
Seed and Plant Improvement Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Karaj, Iran.
J Sci Food Agric. 2023 Aug 15;103(10):5050-5060. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.12574. Epub 2023 Apr 10.
Strategies to enhance the efficient use of irrigation water require a major shift in irrigation and cropping systems. It was hypothesized that (i) replacing water-demanding crops such as corn silage with more drought-tolerant forages species, (ii) adoption of intercropping instead of monoculture, and (iii) use of alternative irrigation methods, may alleviate the water shortage in semi-arid regions, while producing high-quality forage.
Adoption of drip irrigation (DRIP) and alternate furrow irrigation (AFI) reduced water consumption by 43% and 20%, respectively. Additionally, DRIP produced 11% more biomass than the conventional furrow irrigation. The intercropped ratio of 50% sorghum and 50% amaranth under DRIP maximized forage production and improved irrigation water-use efficiency (IWUE). Principal component analysis indicated that the DRIP increased the dry matter yield and IWUE, whereas the AFI improved the forage quality. The intercropped ratio of 75% sorghum and 25% amaranth demonstrated the highest yield stability and was considered superior cropping system regardless of the irrigation strategies.
DRIP and AFI strategies were effective in reducing water consumption, with DRIP being the most water-efficient method. Intercropping sorghum and amaranth at a ratio of 50:50 under DRIP resulted in the highest forage yield and IWUE. While sole amaranth had the highest forage quality, intercropping sorghum and amaranth increased dry matter production with better forage quality than sorghum monoculture. Overall, the combination of DRIP and intercropping sorghum and amaranth at a ratio of 50:50 considered as a suitable strategy for improving forage yield and quality, as well as IWUE. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.
提高灌溉水利用效率的策略需要对灌溉和种植系统进行重大调整。本研究假设：（i）用更耐旱的饲草替代需水量大的玉米青贮等作物，（ii）采用间作而不是单作，以及（iii）使用替代灌溉方法，可能会缓解半干旱地区的水资源短缺，同时生产高质量的饲草。
滴灌（DRIP）和交替沟灌（AFI）分别减少了 43%和 20%的耗水量。此外，DRIP 比传统沟灌多产生 11%的生物量。DRIP 下 50%高粱和 50%苋菜的间作比例最大限度地提高了饲草产量并提高了灌溉水利用效率（IWUE）。主成分分析表明，DRIP 提高了干物质产量和 IWUE，而 AFI 提高了饲草质量。DRIP 下 75%高粱和 25%苋菜的间作比例表现出最高的产量稳定性，并且被认为是一种优越的种植系统，无论采用何种灌溉策略。
DRIP 和 AFI 策略在减少耗水量方面非常有效，DRIP 是最节水的方法。在 DRIP 下，高粱和苋菜以 50:50 的比例间作可获得最高的饲草产量和 IWUE。虽然单独种植苋菜的饲草质量最高，但高粱和苋菜间作可提高干物质产量，同时具有比高粱单作更好的饲草质量。总体而言，DRIP 和高粱与苋菜以 50:50 的比例间作的组合被认为是提高饲草产量和质量以及 IWUE 的一种合适策略。© 2023 化学工业协会。
